Banner Creek Science Center expands facility, programs

Saturday

HOLTON — Holton resident Mike Ford is as enthusiastic today about the stars and planets as he was as a kid looking up at the night sky through a 21/2-inch telescope given to him by his grandparents.

Today, Ford observes meteor showers, eclipses and other astronomical phenomenon through a 20-inch Ritchey-Chretien telescope at the Banner Creek Science Center, a nonprofit natural and physical sciences educational and research facility 21/2 miles west of Holton on K-16 highway and a quarter mile south on N Road.

Ford, who volunteers as the observatory/education director at Banner Creek Science Center and teaches astronomy and geology part-time for Highland Community College, has been instrumental in the center’s development since its inception 12 years ago as the only school-owned observatory in the world.

"In 1999, my wife (Karen) was a grant writer, and I told her I thought it would be cool if the school had a robotics observatory," he said, adding they eventually applied to the Christa McAuliffe Fellowship Program for money to purchase a 14-inch telescope and other equipment for a 20-by-20-foot observatory at Holton High School.

"We found out in April 2000 that we got $33,000. In October 2000, it was finished, and we named it the Elk Creek Observatory. It was in the old shot-put area of the old football field at the high school."

Before long, Holton students were observing the galaxy and providing data to NASA and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory/California Institute of Technology.

Bill Zirger, a Holton High School graduate and chief executive officer of Creative Marketing Unlimited in Kansas City, was impressed in May 2003 when he heard Ford talk about the observatory and the research projects being done by students and how he was trying to raise money for a better telescope and more equipment.

"Mike had 10 percent of the high school students enrolled in astronomy. That struck me as rare," Zirger said.

Within a short time, Zirger contacted Ford and asked how much money would be needed to purchase everything the teacher wanted for the observatory. The answer: About $150,000.

Zirger, now chairman of the science center’s board of directors, said he contacted Sen. Pat Roberts, also a Holton High School graduate, and together they secured funding for the 20-inch telescope and other equipment through a $150,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Education's Technology Initiative Program.

At some point, Ford realized the observatory was sitting in a hole and hampered by light pollution. Board members agreed the observatory needed to be moved outside of Holton and to higher ground for better viewing opportunities. Jackson County and Holton officials said land was available at Banner Creek Reservoir.

"This was the most prime location," he said of the hill that overlooks the reservoir and serves as the site for the science center.

After securing nonprofit status, fundraising efforts began for what would become the 40-by-60-foot Banner Creek Science Center, which has an observatory, climate-controlled classroom, computer system, indoor restrooms and outdoor observation pad.

"We have some world-class volunteers helping us," Zirger said, explaining how individuals and businesses have donated time, materials and labor to the project. "For a small community, it’s really an outstanding effort."

The educational programs offered at the science center range from big-screen presentations to consumer corners on such topics as buying a telescope to rocket building to participation in NASA and Jet Propulsion Laboratory projects to video streaming of live events, such as the transit of Venus in June.

"We will start skyping with scientists in the spring," Ford said, adding he would like to see Topeka public schools and other area school districts use the science center and its programs to enhance their curriculums.

"This is just not a Holton thing. It's a northeast Kansas thing," he said. "Area schools can benefit. Residents can benefit."

Ford said the science center plans to install an industrial-grade automation system by next spring that will allow individuals from around the world to operate the 20-inch telescope using a laptop computer in their homes, schools or other locations.

"The telescope will be going all the time, and people can book it online and use it live," he said. "We'll charge a nominal fee."

The board currently is raising $100,000 to purchase the automation system, replace the imaging camera on the 20-inch telescope, build a pergola and deck, and finish landscaping. It is also looking toward the future, knowing the science center and its programming will outgrow the existing facility in a few years.

Ford said the board is in the process of raising $5 million to construct a new 16,000-square-feet building to house existing observatory equipment, new labs, new classrooms and a small auditorium.

"This is just the beginning," he said.

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